AU / High level media workshop on the African Peace and Security architecture
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, October 26, 2011/African Press Organization (APO)/ — High level media workshop on the African Peace and Security architecture
Time: 2 to 4 November 2011
Venue: AU Conference Centre, African Union Headquarters
Organizers: The Directorate of Information and Communication (DIC) and the Peace and Security Department (PSD), in collaboration with the Francophone Research Network on Peace Operations (ROP)
Justification: The DIC has included in its work programme training sessions for the benefit of African journalists from the five regions of the continent. The sessions are intended to familiarize African journalists with the workings of the decision-making organs of the African Union (AU) in order to enhance their knowledge of the continental organization and allow them to better reflect its activities and programmes. Despite these efforts, the media community still shows some measure of ignorance about the AU, especially with regard to the management of peace and security issues. The workshop, which is part of an educational approach, will focus on interaction between information and communication experts and practitioners in the peace and security sector. An important part, including sessions on case studies, will also be devoted to experience-sharing.
General objectives: The workshop aims to:
Strengthen dialogue between the AU and the media by popularizing the Union’s involvement in peace and security, its Peace and Security Architecture as well as its conflict prevention and resolution components;
Provide reliable information to journalists working on peace and security issues in the continent, and better equip them to understand and deal with this very complex issue;
Contribute to improving the factual quality of media coverage of AU involvement in Peace and Security issues through better understanding of the various components of the APSA.
Specific objectives:
Establish a network of journalists for peace and security in Africa;
Educate the public through the media on AU work in the area of peace and security, and lastly;
Contribute to the entrenchment of a culture of peace in African media.
Expected outcomes: During the workshop, recommendations will be made and a plan of action (POA) will be developed. These documents will be submitted to AU decision-making bodies during their statutory meetings, including the meeting of experts from Member States responsible for information and communication. The plan of action will focus on three main areas:
a) Modalities to follow-up the implementation of the recommendations;
b) Establishment of a network of journalists for the promotion of peace and security in Africa;
c) Publication of workshop proceedings. The contributions of some experts will be published in the third volume of the African Union Herald (January-June 2012) which will be dedicated to the challenges of peace and security.
Participants: The workshop will bring together about thirty high level journalists identified in the 15 States currently members of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union (Benin, Burundi, Ivory Coast, Chad, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Zimbabwe) as well as others from international media groups which give prominence to news of the continent. Communication officials from the Regional Economic Communities and Regional Mechanisms, relevant AU organs (Pan-African Parliament, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights), AUC departments as well as partners are also invited to this event.
SOURCE
African Union Commission (AUC)
